IUCN status: Vulnerable
EPBC Predator Threat Rating: Not assessed
IUCN claim: “Predation by feral Domestic Cats (Felis catus; moderate to severe, across the entire range) and Red Foxes (Vulpes vulpes) represent another major threat”
Gordon et al. (2015) found a negative correlation betwen fox abundance and hopping mouse abundance. Similarly Letnic et al. (2009) found that negative correlation with fox abundance was the third most important predictor variable in a model (after positive correlation with dingoes and rain). Letnic & Koch (2010) reported higher fox abundance and lower hopping mouse abundance outside compared to inside the dingo barrier fence, but direct association not shown. Hopping mice have also been identified in the foxes’ diet (Feit et al. 2019), and more often than in the dingo’s diet (Letnic & Dworjanyn 2011).
Hopping mice were last confirmed in NSW and the NT 4-17 years before foxes arrived (Current submission).
Foxes have been documented among a range of ecological variables
negatively correlated with dusky hopping mouse abundance in three
studies. Causality for decline cannot be inferred due to confounding
variables. In contradiction with the claim the extirpation records
pre-date the fox arrival record.
Current submission (2023) Scant evidence that introduced predators cause extinctions.
Fairfax, Dispersal of the introduced red fox (Vulpes vulpes) across Australia. Biol. Invasions 21, 1259-1268 (2019).
Feit, B., Feit, A. and Letnic, M., 2019. Apex predators decouple population dynamics between mesopredators and their prey. Ecosystems, 22, pp.1606-1617.
Gordon, C.E., Feit, A., Grüber, J. and Letnic, M., 2015. Mesopredator suppression by an apex predator alleviates the risk of predation perceived by small prey. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 282(1802), p.20142870.
IUCN Red List. https://www.iucnredlist.org/ Accessed June 2023
Letnic, M. and Dworjanyn, S.A., 2011. Does a top predator reduce the predatory impact of an invasive mesopredator on an endangered rodent?. Ecography, 34(5), pp.827-835.
Letnic, M. and Koch, F., 2010. Are dingoes a trophic regulator in arid Australia? A comparison of mammal communities on either side of the dingo fence. Austral Ecology, 35(2), pp.167-175.
Letnic, M., Crowther, M.S. and Koch, F., 2009. Does a top‐predator provide an endangered rodent with refuge from an invasive mesopredator?. Animal Conservation, 12(4), pp.302-312.